Honouring Panchayats with High Sex Ratios

Summary

Innovation :To honour Panchayats that achieve a comparatively higher Sex Ratio at Birth (SRB)

Duration : Annually

Location : Virsa Vihar, Kapurthala, Punjab.

Key Stakeholders : Members of the Legislative Assembly, District level Government Officials, Block level Government Officials, Gram Panchayat Members, Anganwadi Workers, Auxiliary Nurse Midwives, Accredited Social Health Activists.

Brief Description

In order to arrest the issue of a declining Child Sex Ratio, the District Administration selected 80 villages across 5 blocks of Kapurthala District having a low Sex Ratio at Birth (SRB). Under the umbrella of the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) Campaign, various activities such as street plays, birth celebration of girl child, Lohri celebration with daughters, kanjak pooja, plant sapling for every new born girl, anti dowry campaign, display of videos centring around valuing a girl child and PC & PNDT Act through mobile van etc. were conducted at the Village and Gram Panchayat level to spread awareness on valuing girls and their importance in society. This awareness generation campaign awakened and motivated people to come forward and participate in BBBP activities to support the cause. The campaign has made people re-think son-centric rituals. It is impacting the mindsets of people to change the current ethos and begin supporting the Girl Child. Out of 80 selected villages, 60 villages are showing a positive trend with improved SRB. The sarpanches of these 60 villages were recognized and honoured with trophies and certificates at the District level by Members of the Legislative Assembly and Government officials for their outstanding efforts and work done at the grass-root level.

Factors Contributing to Success

Convergence with the Health and Education Departments played a vital role in spreading awareness amongst the masses. Frontline workers and Government officials motivated community people to value the Girl Child through conducting various activities such as promoting institutional delivery, pregnancy registration within first trimester, proper ante-natal and post natal care, highlighting importance of a girl child and her contribution to society through pamphlets, the display of Guddi-Gudda boards and stickers.

Outcome, Benefits & Impact

The SRB in 60 villages has considerably improved due to intensive campaigns on valuing girls under BBBP. There are a total of 11 villages where the number of girls born has doubled significantly in comparison to the number of boys born during the campaign period.

Challenges and Future Prospects

Society’s son–centric approach is still strong; therefore, it will take time to change mindsets of people to achieve a balanced society.

Source: Innovations under Beti Bachao Beti Padhao